Berkeley Firm Finds Upside In ‘Decadence’

BERKELEY, CA — A Berkeley-based meat cultivation firm believes it's found value in “decadence.”

UPSIDE Foods on Tuesday announced it has acquired Cultural Decadence, a Madison, Wisconsin-based firm that cultivates seafood.

UPSIDE Foods, formerly Memphis Meats, cultivates meat directly from animal cells, without the need to raise or slaughter animals.

The company released the world's first cultivated meatball in February 2016 and the world's first cultivated poultry in March 2017

Cultured Decadence has developed proprietary cell lines and cell feed for a variety of delicious, high-impact seafood products, including lobster and other crustaceans, the company said.

“This acquisition will enable UPSIDE to complement and expand its product portfolio and accelerate commercialization of a range of seafood products grown directly from animal cells, without raising animals. Cultured Decadence will adopt UPSIDE's brand and remain in Wisconsin as UPSIDE's Midwest hub,” UPSIDE said in a statement announcing the merger.

The deal follows UPSIDES’s November opening of its Engineering, Production, and Innovation Center (EPIC), which the company describes as “the most advanced cultivated meat production facility in the world.”

"Seafood has a rich and delicious culinary tradition that makes it a favorite across the globe. Cultivated seafood also has a tremendous potential to benefit the world," UPSIDE founder and CEO Dr. Uma Valeti said in a statement.

"Cultured Decadence's technology is incredibly promising, and their team is filled with passionate, smart individuals who want to make our favorite food a force for good. We're thrilled to welcome the Cultured Decadence team to the UPSIDE family and are excited that the scientific, technological, and production infrastructure we have built over many years can help accelerate the mission impact of this team."

Cultivated meat, poultry and seafood is real meat produced directly by growing animal cells, without the need to raise and slaughter animals. It is not vegan, vegetarian or plant-based.

"We've long admired UPSIDE's innovation and leadership in the cultivated meat industry," Cultured Decadence co-founders John Pattison and Ian Johnson said in a statement.

"UPSIDE's unparalleled R&D and scale up capabilities will significantly accelerate the commercialization of cultivated delicious, sustainable and humane seafood.

"Uma and his team's 'Big Tent' mentality resonates deeply with our team, and we are incredibly proud and humbled to be joining such a talented group with a deep shared sense of mission, purpose and commitment to doing the right thing. There's nobody else we'd rather join to build the future of food."